Research Team

Dr. Sabre Cherkowski is a Professor in the Okanagan School of Education at the University of British Columbia. She holds the UBCO Tier 1 Principal’s Research Chair in Leadership, Learning, and Wellbeing. Her research focuses on leadership, professional learning and development, educator well-being, learning communities, and school organizing. Prof. Cherkowski is currently leading research on sustainable approaches to whole-school wellbeing by examining community-responsive learning cultures in Canada, USA and internationally.

She has been recognized for her innovative research, receiving UBC Okanagan’s 2020 Researcher of the Year award for Social Sciences and Humanities. She explores how positive leadership can foster a culture of flourishing in schools, emphasizing the importance of strengths and positive outlooks to increase resilience, vitality, and happiness. She is also the Academic Lead for the Doctor of Education program at UBC Okanagan. Her work integrates ideas from positive psychology and positive organization studies to promote well-being in educational settings.

Prof. Cherkowski examines the role of leadership in cultivating positive workspaces and professional learning environments. Her research highlights the importance of creating a culture of flourishing in schools, where educators can grow their professional and personal potential. She has conducted extensive studies on teacher well-being, professional development, and the organizational dynamics that support sustainable school improvement.

Julia Mahfouz, Ph.D., is an associate professor in the Leadership for Educational Organizations program, School of Education and Human Development at the University of Colorado-Denver. She is also the director of the Prosocial Leader Lab. Dr. Mahfouz teaches in the principal licensure, EdD, and PhD programs, specializing in educational leadership, social and emotional learning, and research methodologies.

Her research focuses on three overarching strands of inquiry: a) professional development, preparation programs, and interventions for school administrators, b) social and emotional learning, mindfulness, and culturally sustaining pedagogies, and c) school improvement, policies, and educational reform. These understandings seek to deepen the understanding the social, emotional, and cultural dynamics of educational settings placing specific emphasis on Adult SEL, specifically school administrators and the integration of systemic SEL.

Her extensive research output includes 65 publications and 100 refereed presentations at various national and international conferences. She is one of the inaugural cohort members of CASEL Weissberg scholars and has recently received the Joseph E. Zins Distinguished Scientist Award for Outstanding contributions to action research in social and emotional learning.